


This Conviction Second to None

by JadeRiverDay



Series: Tales of Two [2]
Category: Vocaloid
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - Role Reversal, Alternate Universe - Royalty, Based on a Vocaloid Song, F/M, Other, Reader-Insert, This Is Not Going To Go The Way You Think
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-25
Updated: 2020-03-25
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:34:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,976
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23314708
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JadeRiverDay/pseuds/JadeRiverDay
Summary: "You gave me a new purpose."In which you are no ordinary damsel in distress.
Relationships: Zhiyu Moke/Reader
Series: Tales of Two [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1675576
Kudos: 4





	This Conviction Second to None

**Author's Note:**

> never thought I'd actually write something like this but once again, this is heavily inspired by/heavily based on ZhuXiaoShengzoki's song 二度使命 (Level Two Mission) featuring the Kagamines!  
> the Chinese version is [here](https://www.bilibili.com/video/BV1W7411J7CA/) and the Japanese version is [here](https://www.bilibili.com/video/av83782745/)  
> It's the same as last time: almost a translation fic except I tweaked it to fit a reader insert and added some things for Moke!

Long ago, in a land that always rained, there was a dark forest feared by humans, for legend had it that there was a monster hidden in the forest who would kidnap anyone that dared to enter. The arrogant, the weak, the explorers, the fools, anyone who tried to enter the forest never returned from their journey.

You had been exiled, chased from your home by soldiers. Carrying only a small bag on your back, you found yourself at the entrance of this legendary forest. You had nowhere else to go, no home to return to, and you needed a place to stay for the night, so you bit back your fear and entered the forest.

Not long after you entered did you find a strange boy wearing a hideous mask. You jumped, only barely to keep in a scream, at the terrible sight, but the boy stood still, stoically carrying an oil lamp. You squinted through in the dim light from his lamp, and you felt the stare of the mask on you. Frightened by the mask, you avoided looking at its sinister smile. Instead, your eyes fell on a strangely beautiful flower brooch pinned to what looked like his jacket. You blinked and swallowed your fear.

"I'm sorry," you said. "I have nowhere to go. Do you know where I could stay for the night?"

In your peripheral vision (for you dared not to look directly at the mask), you saw the boy look around before turning and heading into the forest. Hoping that he had agreed to help you, you followed him deeper into the forest, careful not to fall too far behind but all the while keeping your distance. You didn't know who this person was, and all you were doing was clutching to a sliver of hope. Neither of you stopped until you came across a small cottage. You watched him open the door before he turned around and saw that you were still there. He froze for a moment, then gestured for you to come inside.

Inside, contrary to your expectations, you found the cottage barren, with only an empty fireplace in the back and a small drawer to the side. It was unusually cold in a cottage, you noted, and your surprise must have been pasted across your face for he picked some branches from the ceiling and made a small fire. Afterwards, he lowered himself to the ground and gestured for you to do so. You swung your bag off your shoulder and placed it by the fireplace before sitting yourself next to the warmth of the fire. You pulled out some bread and placed it over the fire before shifting yourself towards the masked boy.

"Do you live here?" you asked.

You realized that whatever expression he would have on his face would be hidden by his mask. He nodded, but you couldn't tell if it was a happy nod or a sad one. In the flickering light of the fire, the mask was just as fearsome as before as the light danced upon it, making the gold paint shine sinisterly. You tore your eyes from the mask, instead focusing on the fire, but then you felt a light touch on your hand. You looked over and found that he had taken it, as if trying to reassure you of something. You didn't dare to look at his mask, but you didn't pull away.

When the sweet smell of bread filled the room, you took the bread out of the fireplace, before staring dumbly at the earthen floor. Where could you put this bread? you wondered before he took out some tableware and two plates from the drawer. He took out a small candle and lit it by the door, illuminating the whole room with the light of fires. Together, you and the masked boy shared a crude, yet comfortable, dinner that night.

The next morning, you woke to sunlight shining through the windows of the cottage. After getting up and going outside, you found that the rain had stopped completely, and there were only those white fluffy clouds left in the sky. You found no sign, nothing that resembled the fearsome, dark forest you had entered the night before, and no sign of that boy. It was like everything had only been a nightmare you dreamt up.

Before you lay beauty you had never thought possible. A small stream babbled happily as it flowed into a lake so clear, you could see the fish swimming among the aquatic plants. Under your feet, you found grasses and small wildflowers growing lushly, and as far as you could see, there were green, green trees filled with birds whose songs you listened to. Across the lake, you saw deer grazing and a lamb causing them trouble, and below some bushes, you saw hares resting in the shade.

A place this beautiful, you thought, could only be purest land in this world.

Wanting to take in all of this beauty, you explored and wandered through the trees, taking in as much as you could while you were still here: the roughness of tree bark, the smoothness of blades of grass, the subtle fragrance of the wildflowers, and so on. Eventually, you wandered out to the edge of the forest where you found the boy standing behind a tree near the entrance of the forest, the same place you went when you entered. He stood stoically once again, as if guarding the forest.

"You must be the only one in this forest," you murmured quietly.

He turned from the outside world to face you. In the light of day, his mask seemed less terrible, and you were far less afraid of it compared to the previous night. But just like last night, he remained silent, waiting for you to continue.

"Are you lonely?" you blurted out, not realizing how stupid of a question it sounded until after you had said it. Of course he was lonely.

He turned away before nodding slightly.

It occurred to you that you had forgotten to introduce yourself. Hurriedly, you introduced yourself before asking for his name.

He hesitated before the eyes of the mask settled on yours. You just barely made out "Zhiyu Moke", and you could tell instantly from how his voice cracked that he hadn't spoken for a long, long time. You realized that, and you felt sorry for his loneliness so you decided to stay by his side in guarding the forest.

Five days passed like this, and you scarcely noticed it. You learned that Moke rose early and returned late to scare away people who tried entering the forest. He was the monster the legends spoke about, placed here to protect the purest land in the world. You admired his dedication to this place, and you wished that you, too, could live here. Living with him didn't seem too bad either; knowing that his mask was merely a disguise for him to carry out his duty, you could get used to his hideous mask.

But that flower brooch pinned to his chest fascinated you the most. It was intricately beautiful, and you swore that it was a real flower. With every day that passed, you noticed how it seemed to have opened up slowly, as if it was in the process of blooming. Every day, you asked him if it needed to be watered or whether it would bear fruit after it had bloomed. Every time, he would laugh softly and say, "Even I don't know."

You wanted to stay to see it bloom, but you knew that you could only stay here for so long. Despite the beautiful nature outside, you were running out of food. Eventually, you would have to leave and see if you could find another place that would be kind enough to give you bread and a place to sleep. You had to find another home, as much as you wanted to stay.

You did stay another day because you made a strange and startling discovery on the sixth day. You were just outside the cottage when you saw Moke emerge from the forest, much earlier than normal. Although you had noticed since the first day that Moke seemed to always be shrouded in darkness, as if sunlight bent around him, that illusion of darkness around him had been fading. However, that wasn't what frightened you. In the light of the setting sun, you found that he cast no shadow. You were too afraid to tell him; it didn't seem like he noticed either. You wondered "since when did he not have a shadow?" but since you didn't notice before, you couldn't remember if he had a shadow before.

This question would continue to plague you.

* * *

On the seventh day, he escorted you to the entrance of the forest to send you off.

As you walked, you tried to grab his hand, to give him the same reassuring touch that he had given you on the first night, but no matter where you happened to swing your hand, you could never find his. You looked down to find that Moke was slowly becoming transparent, and a small gasp escaped your mouth, but Moke showed no reaction. It wasn't like you could tell anyways; the mask hid everything, except his flower. You noticed how the flower brooch had gone from only half open on the first night to completely blooming today.

Softly, you heard him call your name. "May I ask for your embrace?" he asked, almost begged quietly.

You obliged, pulling him in close. When you looked down upon his back, you saw how his body seemed to flicker and fade to transparency. With every passing breeze, more of him vanished before your eyes, but you still held him close, unwilling to let him go.

You heard his voice whisper in your ear. "You saw, didn't you? The flower bloomed, so now it's time for me to go too." There was wonder in his voice, as if his slow disappearance amazed him. You couldn't see his face nor could you see his mask, but you could feel the mask's presence on your shoulder.

"What a shame," he murmured. "Once I'm gone, there'll be no one left to guard this forest."

You felt tears well up in your eyes as you gasped at his statement. Clutching him closer to you, not knowing nor caring if you were suffocating him in your embrace, you let your tears fall down his fading back. You squeezed your eyes shut, feeling the tears squeezed out of your eyes, as if trying to pretend for just a moment that you would see him again. You pulled him as close as you could before releasing him. You grabbed his hands; finally they were solid enough, and you looked into his eyes as best as you could.

"Don't forget me," you ordered. "Don't forget that you gave me a new home, a new role. I promise you that I will try my best to protect what you have protected for so long."

The mask stared back at you for a moment, but you swore you heard faint sobbing. You weren't sure if it was yours, but when Moke pulled his hands away, he took off his mask solemnly, and you saw how he, too, was crying. Despite the tears falling from those crystal blue eyes you finally saw, his lips were curved upward in a bright smile. Before he vanished, he placed the mask in your hands.

The flower brooch was the last thing left of him, but even then, the petals fell off one by one and like dust, they scattered in the winds.

* * *

After a moment of silence, you solemnly put that mask on, and turned your back on the outside world.


End file.
